The present invention relates generally to chemical and biological sampling, and more specifically to a self-sealing sample cartridge for use with a device for monitoring ambient air or other gas for chemical or biological compounds.
Systems for real-time detection of biological and chemical compounds or agents are known in the art. Exemplary known systems may utilize a contactor having a substrate therein, such that the air or gas being analyzed comes into contact with the substrate, such as water, so that chemical and biological compounds or agents are transferred thereto.
Such devices may have a number of limitations. For example, known devices may utilize a sample container that is not removable from the device but is, instead, an integral component thereof. This makes cleaning of the sample container difficult. Further, even if the sample container is removable, it may be a permanent part of the device, being used over multiple sampling runs throughout the life of the device. This increases the chances that the sample container will suffer from cross-contamination between runs, from being generally dirty, or from ordinary wear and tear to the device during use. Further, such sample containers may become prone to leakage due to weakening seals or other portions of the container structure with reuse over time. It is therefore desirable to provide a self-sealing, single-use sample cartridge for use with a gas or air monitoring device, such that the cartridge is not susceptible to cross-contamination or dirtying due to repeated use, and is not susceptible to structural weakening due to repeated use over time.
A further problem with some known air and gas monitoring devices is that, upon initial use, the device must provide fluid from a fluid reservoir into the device so that the fluid can be delivered to a contactor, where it acts as a substrate during the sampling run. The process of delivering fluid from a reservoir, through the device, to a contactor takes time and can lead to slow startup times for the sampling device. Thus, it is desirable to provide a component to such a device that allows for rapid startup of the device. Further, in some known devices, the use of a pressure-based fluid level control would require a component that maintains a pressure seal at its machine interface.
Further, in known devices, collection and storage of a sample after a sampling run may require transfer of the sample to a storage container external to the device, such as by manual transfer at the hands of a technician or other skilled worker. This allows opportunity for contamination of the sample during transfer, or due to contamination of the storage receptacle. It also presents the possibility of exposure of the technician to harmful chemicals or agents within the sample.
An additional problem presented by devices that require transfer of the collected sample to a storage container is that the storage container may be mislabeled or may contain insufficient data to identify the sample and the parameters of the sampling run from which the sample was obtained. This can lead to faulty interpretation of data taken from analysis of the sample, or in some cases may render the sample useless for further analysis. Thus, it is desirable to provide a sample storage container for any given sample within the sampling device itself, and likewise to provide a unique identifier for any given sample. Likewise, it is further desirable to provide an automatic means of imparting identification information to the sample storage container upon delivery of the sample to the container.
Further, in known devices it is typically required that the collected sample be pretreated with buffer solutions, bio-chemical assays, or other chemicals that are used as part of the analysis method. Thus it is desirable to provide a sample storage container that is pre-filled with the required chemicals for analysis.